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ACT’s regular bulletin
Two New Partnership Schools Announced

Last week David Seymour announced two new Partnership Schools to open in 2018. Both will be in the central North Island, one in Tauranga and the other in Rotorua. These two new Partnership Schools will join 10 now operating in Whangarei (2), the North Shore, West Auckland, South Auckland (4), Hamilton and Hawkes Bay.

Blue Light Senior Boys High School

This school will be a year 11 to 13 residential school for boys in Taupo. It will have an outdoors, Kaupapa Maori focus and it will be run by the Blue Light trust who have worked for youth with the New Zealand Police since 1983. Once again, a new school and a local group are showing the power of partnership to bring new expertise to bear on education.

Te Rangihakahaka Centre for Science and Technology

This school is sponsored by a Rotorua hapu, through the Ngāti Whakaue Trust. It will be a co-ed school for years 1-10, opening with an initial 80 students building to 200. It is an example of the flexibility that Partnership Schools have, using a curriculum combining STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) with Ngāti Whakaue’s own special curriculum, using standard assessments.

Beth the Destroyer

Ali Mau’s interview of ACT Deputy Leader Beth Houlbrooke is a good example of how not to interview a politician. Beth destroys her. Journalism Schools should download it. If you are an aspiring politician who’d like to hear how you get your point across clearly and calmly while the interviewer works themselves into a frenzy, have a listen to Beth here.

What Did She Say?

In response to Labour’s blatant election bribe policy of a $3,000 ‘baby bonus’ Beth pointed out that people should get themselves into a position where they have the support network and security to give children a good upbringing rather than relying on a one-time government hand out. For 90 per cent of New Zealanders it’s totally uncontroversial but stayed in the media all of last week as the twitteratti worked themselves into a lather.

Labour Announcement Destroyed

Poor Labour. Their attempt to bribe voters with their own money crashed and burned as the story turned to the morality of it rather than the benefit to potential Labour voters. It is heartening that tax and spend politics can still be brought to heel by incisive criticism.

ACT’s Candidates Everywhere

Over the past week ACT’s candidates have been featured all over local media. See Anneka Carson (New Plymouth) here. Stuart Pedersen (Tauranga) here. Tom Corbett (Rangitata) here. In Dunedin North, Sam Purchas is on the front cover of Otago University’s Critic Magazine article here.

Pay it Back, Metiria

It’s a strange world when admitting benefit fraud is a virtue. MPs have resigned for less than Metiria’s Turei’s admission she lied to WINZ, meaning she committed benefit fraud. We can all admire the single mum who goes to law school and makes good, even if they become a Green MP, but MPs cannot be above the law. In particular, how can she expect to be in Government as a Minister? Who would take seriously a benefit fraud crackdown by Minister Turei?

Rule them Out, National

Commenting on Turei’s comments on the Monday morning AM Show, Acting Prime Minister Paula Bennett refused to condemn Turei, it seems the rumours are true, National are keeping a National-Green coalition as a back-up. The answer of course is more ACT MPs so that an ACT National Government is possible without these other parties.

Freedom Ain’t Free

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